Belt and pulley measuring apparatus



June 23, 1936. T. L. HEDQPETH 2,044,983

BELT AND PULLEY MEASURING PPARATUS Filed Janv. 18, 1956 A i A E Patented`une 23, 1,936

UNITEDSTATES 2,044,983 BELT AND PULLEY MEASURING APPARATUS Theron L.Hedgpeth, Oak Park, Ill., assignor to Duro Metal Products Company,Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Applimtifmv January 1s, i936,serial 10.59564 4 Claims.

My invention contemplates and provides an apparatus which facilitatesthe proper selection, and consequently the sale, of appropriate belts,pulleys and suitable combinations of the same.

Power tools of the kinds now extensively used by amateur craftsmen areusually `motor driven through the agency `of so-called V beltscooperating with driving and driven pulleys having peripheral groovesfor `the reception of such belts. The grooves of different makes ofpulleys frequently vary as to both depth and the angularity of theirside walls Different makes of belts also may vary as to the `dimensionbetween their inner and outer surfaces, as well as the angularitybetween their lateral surfaces. These circumstances have made it adifficult matter for dealers salesmen to select, or assist amateurcraftsmen in selecting, belts, pulleys and belt-pulley combinationssuitable for associationwith any given toolv and its driving motor-eventhough the distance between the centers of the pulley shafts of the tooland motor be known. It is to the elimination of this difficulty that`the present invention is directed.

In the accompanying drawing: a

Fig. 1 is a front elevational View of a pulley display board `t0 which Ihave elected tonapply the improvements of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 andlooking in the direction indicated by the arrows,-the displayed pulleys,in this instance, having been removed from their supporting pins( tosimplify the figure; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view, on Somewhat enlarged scale,taken in the horizontal planes of the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 and looking inthe direction indicated by the arrows.

' Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout theseveral views.

At 4 I have illustrated a ,suitably framed display board intended to bevertically mounted or suspended against a salesroom wall. The cbverseface of the board may be regarded as divided into two fields A and B bythe vertically extending scale 5 which is a part of the improvements ofthe present invention. Such scale, which is applied to the board 4 inany suitable manner, is preferably graduated in inches.

Located in the field A, and projecting horizontally and forwardlytherefrom, is a plurality of pins 6-6 adapted to project through,support and display pulleys 1--1 of the kinds usually employed inconnection with amateur craftsmens tools,i. e., peripherally groovedpulleys, in the usual sizes, of both the single groove type and the conetypehaving a plurality of peripheral grooves of graduated diameters.

Located in the iield B, and `cooperating with the scale 5, are theinstrumentalities, now to be describedwith which the present inventionis `5 concerned.

Fixedly supported by and projecting horizontally and forwardly from theboard 4 is a pin 8, the reduced forward end of which constitutes a malebearing Whereon any one of the pulleys l0 1-1 may be mounted for freerotation. Located beneath the bearing pin 8 is a verticallyreciprocatory cross head or bearing carriage 9 from which projects abearing pin ID having its axis at all times maintained in parallelismwith the l5 axis of pin 8,-the reduced forward end of this pin l0 alsobeing adapted to receive any `one of the pulleys '1 -l.

Cross head 9 is provided in each of its vertical edges with a groove Hwhich slidingly receives 20 `a correspondingly shaped tongue l2 formedintegrally with the adjacent one of a pair `of spaced-apart verticallydisposed guide rails I3-I 3. The guide rails are secured to the board 4by any suitable means, for example, the bolts `25 M-M.

` Having one end threaded into the larger diameter portion of pin I0,and projecting laterally and .horizontally therefrom, is a rod I5 havinga pointed extremity I5--a, which is offset 30 to lie adjacent board 4and cooperate with graduated scale 5.

The practical utility of the apparatus of Athe present invention readilycan be appreciated by .giving consideration to several often encounteredsituations wherein the apparatus is most useful.

Let us suppose that a dealers salesman is in- .formed by a customer thatthe latter wishes to purchase a V belt for'cocperation with peripherallygrooved driving and driven pulleys of six inch and four inch diameter,respectively, located on shafts having their centers sixteen inchesapart. The salesman, if equipped with the apparatus of the presentinvention, immediately places a six inch pulley on pin 8 or pin IIJ, afour inch pulley on the other of said pins 8 and ID, places what heconjectures to be the proper size belt around the said pulleys, andpermits (or causes) the cross head 9 and parts carried there- 50 by togravitate in guide rails I3-I3 until the belt is tautened. 1f, in thesecircumstances, the pointer l5-a indicates 16 on the scale 5, thesalesman knows that the tested belt is the one which the customerrequires. On the other` fio hand, if the pointer does not indicate 16, alonger or shorter belt, as the case may be, must be similarly tested andproven to be of the proper length to meet the requirement of thecustomer.

Oihand it might occur to one that the customer could simplify theselection of the proper belt by wrapping a string around his pulleys,measuring the string and then give the salesman the length of the stringas the inside length of the required belt. But such a method (whilesatisfactory enough in the selection of a flat belt for cooper- Y thepresent invention, be of the same make, or be known to be substantiallyidentical with, those pulleys of the customers equipment with which thepurchased belt is to cooperate.

' Now let us suppose that the salesman is advised by the customer thatthe latter is employing a six inch driving pulley and a four inch drivenpulley, on centers sixteen inches apart, and that vhe wishes to increasehis speed by the expedient of substituting a three inch pulley for thefour inch pulley, but does not know what length of V belt he willrequire after the substitution of pulleys has been eiected. In such asituation, the salesman places a six inch pulley on one of the bearingpins 8 or l il, a three inch pulley on the other of said bearing pins,and applies belts to the said pulleys untilv one of the said belts isproperly tautened, under the gravitational pull of cross head 9 andparts carried thereby, with the pointer l5-a indicating sixteen incheson scale 5.

' l Other situations in which the apparatus of. the

present invention will assist both salesman and customer in theadaptation of belts to pulleys and vice versa, will readily suggestthemselves in the light of the specific examples hereinbefore given.

Having thus illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of myinvention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:

1. In an apparatus for facilitating the selection of belts and pulleys,the combination of a vertically disposed support, a pair of verticallydisplaced bearings carried by the support, each of said bearings beingin the form of a horizontally disposed pin to which a pulley may beremovably applied, said bearings being maintained with their axes in thesame vertical plane, a cross head by which the lower one of saidbearings is carried,

a pair of spaced-part vertically disposed guide rails, carried by thesupport, on and between which the cross head is movable toward and awayfrom the upper bearing while maintaining the axis of the lower bearingparallel with the axis of. the upper bearing, a graduated scale carriedby the support, and a pointer, carried with the cross head, forindicating the distance between the axes of said bearings when a belt,placed around pulleys mounted on said bearings, has been tautened by thegravitational pull of the cross head and parts carried thereby.

2. In an apparatus for facilitating the selection of belts and pulleys,a support, a pair of vertically displaced bearings, to each of which apulley may be removably applied, carried by the support, the upperbearing being held against any movement which will shift its axisrelatively to the support, a bearing carriage, mounted on the support,wherewith the lower bearing is movable toward and away from the upperbearing while having its axis maintained parallel to the axis of theupper bearing, means for guiding movements of the bearing carriagetoward and away from the upper bearing, and means for indicating thedistance between the axes of said bearings when a belt, placed aroundpulleys mounted on said bearings, has been tautened by the gravitationalpull of the said bearing carriage and parts carl ried thereby.

3. In an apparatus for facilitating the selection of belts and pulleys,a support, a pair of bearings, to each of which a pulley may beremovably applied, carried by the support, one of said bearings beingheld against any movement which will shift 3 its axis relatively to thesupport, a bearing carriage, carried by the support, wherewith the otherbearing is movable toward and away from the rst bearing while having itsaxis maintained in parallelism with the axis'of the first bearing,

means for guiding movements of the bearing carriage on the supporttoward and away from the rst bearing, and means for indicating thedistance between the axes of said bearings when a belt, placed aroundpulleys mounted on said bearings, has been tautened by movement of thecarriage, and the bearing carried thereby, away from the said rstbearing.

4. In an apparatus for facilitating the selection of belts and pulleys,a support, a pair of. bearings, to each of which a pulley may beremovably applied, carried by the support, devices for permittingrelative movements between said bearings while maintaining inparallelism the axes of the pulleys carried by said bearings, andinstrumentalities for indicating the distance between the axes of thesaid pulleys when a belt, placed around the said pulleys, has beentautened by separation of Vsaid bearings.

Y 'IHERON L. HEDGPETH.

